Resistive and Capacitive Sensors Driver for Irrigation Applications

Following the climate changes of today, high summer temperatures accompanied by dry air have become more frequent in Romania. This is a direct factor which influences the agriculture field in the entire country, by changing the resilience of plants and crops. To overcome some of the problems, an automated irrigation system is essential. To achieve high efficiency of the irrigation system, the watering is set based on the soil humidity. An array of humidity (resistive or capacitive) sensors is installed on the working field, to gather the mean humidity of the fields soil. The main control unit consists of several analogue circuits for averaging humidities, setting references, controlling the water pump, ensuring safety and setting the user interface. The system provides a reliable and easy to use solution for farmers, to automate the irrigation process.